What are Andy Burnham’s foreign policy priorities?

{"text":[[{"start":8.25,"text":"Donald Trump’s pronouncement this week that Andy Burnham is “extremely liberal” has prompted questions about the foreign policy positions of Britain’s likely next prime minister, including on the US and its president, and relations with the EU."}],[{"start":22.25,"text":"Burnham’s views on foreign policy remain largely opaque, given he has kept a tight focus on the domestic agenda during his time as Greater Manchester mayor and during the Makerfield by-election campaign."}],[{"start":34.3,"text":"His allies say they expect a high level of continuity from Sir Keir Starmer’s stance on Britain backing Ukraine and on support for Nato. "}],[{"start":43.65,"text":"On UK-EU relations there could be more divergence, however. Having campaigned for Remain ahead of the 2016 EU referendum, Burnham told the Labour Party conference last autumn: “I want to rejoin the EU. I hope it happens in my lifetime.” "}],[{"start":60.599999999999994,"text":"He rowed back from that while campaigning for the by-election in Makerfield, where voters backed Brexit by two to one, saying he was “not proposing that the UK considers rejoining the EU” and stressing that he respected the 2016 referendum result. "}],[{"start":75.89999999999999,"text":"But deeper UK-EU relations are a consistent thread of his thinking and his pick for foreign secretary may hold a clue about his intentions. Prominent Europhile Wes Streeting is tipped as an option and would signal a desire for a more profound reset of the relationship between London and Brussels."}],[{"start":94.35,"text":"David Miliband, previously foreign secretary under Gordon Brown, is also keen to return to government, according to his friends. Opinion is split among Labour officials about whether it would be palatable for him to reprise his old role at the helm of the Foreign Office from the House of Lords, if Burnham were to make him a peer. "}],[{"start":111,"text":"A special envoy role to the prime minister could be another option for Miliband, which would build on his experience as president of the New York-headquartered International Rescue Committee for the past 13 years."}],[{"start":122.5,"text":"Yvette Cooper, the current foreign secretary, could also remain in position. Contemporaries during the New Labour years and rivals for the leadership in 2015, Cooper and Burnham are said to be cordial — if not especially close — and she is considered a safe pair of hands. "}],[{"start":138.95,"text":"Team Burnham is perhaps aware of its limitations on foreign policy and is starting to reach out to experts. Sir Olly Robbins, the former Foreign Office permanent secretary, has been approached by figures close to Burnham to discuss major foreign policy issues, according to people familiar with the matter."}],[{"start":155.45,"text":"He is now expected to be offered the role of national security adviser, as first reported by The Spectator. The role would fit with his experience, which includes having been deputy NSA and Theresa May’s chief Brexit negotiator. "}],[{"start":169.89999999999998,"text":"Many mandarins would welcome the return of a talented colleague whom they believe was dismally mistreated by Starmer. The prime minister sacked Robbins earlier this year for approving security clearance for Lord Peter Mandelson in his role as the UK’s ambassador to Washington, despite red flags raised by the government vetting agency."}],[{"start":190.39999999999998,"text":"Jonathan Powell, the current NSA, is also open-minded about remaining in post during a transition period, according to friends. "}],[{"start":198.29999999999998,"text":"Another former Labour official with foreign policy experience who is expected to return to government is Donjeta Miftari, a figure in the Burnham campaign. She previously advised Starmer on foreign affairs before falling victim to the so-called “boys’ club” culture in Downing Street that also saw her close associate Sue Gray forced out. "}],[{"start":218.45,"text":"This week Trump said he had heard that Burnham was “extremely liberal” and described him as “the mayor of a town” who “probably won’t open up the North Sea” for more fossil-fuel extraction. "}],[{"start":229.5,"text":"The critical views seem to flow both ways. During the US Capitol riots of January 6 2021, Burnham said on X: “Any UK politician who gave Trump the time of day should be ashamed right now.” Last year Burnham criticised the US president for bringing “instability to the world” in an interview with The London Economic. "}],[{"start":248.55,"text":"In the final days of the Makerfield campaign, Burnham raised concerns about Britain moving towards an American style of politics, which he described as “a polarised, poisonous politics where people in communities don’t work together any more”. However, he stopped short of naming the US president. "}],[{"start":266,"text":"Given the importance of Israel and Palestine to many Labour voters, and the party’s loss of support to independent candidates and the Greens over the issue, Burnham’s views are coming under heavy scrutiny."}],[{"start":276.6,"text":"When Burnham ran for Labour leader in 2015, he emphasised the importance of restoring relations between the party and Israel, and vowed that his first overseas trip in post would be to Israel."}],[{"start":289.95000000000005,"text":"In the wake of the October 7 2023 attacks by Hamas on Israel, Burnham swiftly called for a ceasefire and last June he joined other party figures to demand the UK recognise Palestinian statehood “without further delay or equivocation” — a call answered by Starmer three months later."}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":309.70000000000005,"text":"Asked this month whether Israel’s operations in Gaza amount to genocide, he said he “cannot judge things of that enormity from where I am as mayor of Greater Manchester”, but stressed his “concerns about the disproportionate nature of what has happened in terms of the destruction” and said there had to be an investigation and accountability."}],[{"start":328.90000000000003,"text":"Earlier this month The New World, a left-leaning internationalist newspaper, decried the “foreign policy-shaped hole in Burnham’s CV” and joked that commentators were having to divine the former mayor’s approach to Nato from his decision to take Greater Manchester buses into public ownership and paint them yellow."}],[{"start":346.65000000000003,"text":"One Labour official rolled their eyes in response to suggestions that Burnham would face an uphill struggle to get to grips with this part of his in-tray, however."}],[{"start":356.25000000000006,"text":"“Keir Starmer is regarded as ‘good’ on this front and he didn’t do any foreign policy until he walked into the building. It’s not easy, but it’s also not as complicated as everyone is making out,” the official said. "}],[{"start":368.65000000000003,"text":"“Andy Burnham is an experienced politician, he’s charming and affable and that’s a big part of diplomacy.”"}],[{"start":381.85,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1782462043_1279.mp3"}